For Christmas “The Girl,” received a telescope. She has become fascinated with the night sky. The Nebraska winter has not been to kind to outside star gazing. But lately spring has sprung so when the temperature started to warm we found ourselves out on the deck with the telescope. It is amazing to see the moon up close and personal.
We can all pick out the moon out of the night sky but what about the stars. They are wonderful to look at but without a little history or knowing what you are looking at you might as well see them in a book.
Google Star Map changes all that for us. This is one cool sci fi application. You install Google Star map for free from the Android Market place. I am using it on the Motorola Droid.
When you open Google Star Map your phone will scan to find your location. Point it to the sky and see the sky come to life.
If you are looking for a particular object use the search feature. This will aim you to the right coordinates with a simple arrow. Perfect for the naked eye or use with the telescope.
In the settings you can toggle for night sky which illuminates the screen with red dots.
In the settings panel you can also choose from several displays. I am not an anstronomer by any stretch of the imagination so I really don’t have a clue about all the options but I will say this if you want a particular map with particular coordinates it is on Google Star Map.
This is a fun droid app for you and the kids. I can’t wait to take it with us when we camp this summer.
